40 questions before your next manufacturing order.

Our sourcing focus is custom metal parts manufactured in China for global engineering customers. The specific manufacturing route and delivery arrangement are confirmed in the reviewed quote.

The intake supports CNC machining, sheet metal, metal 3D printing, casting or forging review, CAD design and surface finishing. Available supply, material and inspection requirements are reviewed before a project is accepted.

Choose the undecided process option and describe the part’s purpose, interfaces and priorities. Engineering can propose a route, which you review before agreeing the manufacturing scope.

Yes. One RFQ can contain up to 20 separately specified parts. Give each part its own name, material, process, quantity and drawing revision, then assign files to a part or mark them as shared project files.

Submit the actual quantity for each part and explain whether it is a prototype, pilot or repeat order. The form’s accepted quantity range is an input limit; it is not a promise of manufacturing capacity or minimum order economics.

STEP, STP, STL, 3MF, IGS, IGES, OBJ, DWG, DXF, PDF and ZIP are accepted. Acceptance of a file type does not confirm that its contents are production-ready or that geometry has been validated.

Use drawings to state the units, datums, threads, critical fits, tolerance limits, finish and inspection requirements. A model alone may not describe the requirements that determine whether a part is acceptable.

Mark shared assembly, drawing or project packages explicitly as project files. Part-specific files should be assigned to the matching part. File assignments are checked when you submit or revise the scope.

Yes. Before checkout begins, use the scope editor to select the files that belong to the current review and retire older files from that scope. History remains available, and restoring an older file requires a current successful scan.

A file may be up to 1 GiB. Initial intake accepts up to 20 files; a project may retain up to 100 files including retired versions. Supply complete, readable files and avoid treating a large upload as proof that it can be analyzed.

Local checks organize supplied requirements and file roles, flag missing information and prepare follow-up questions. They do not establish manufacturability, measure CAD geometry or approve a production price.

When the feature is available, a verified account can describe an L bracket, round flange or open box in millimetres, explicitly consent to external text planning, edit the proposed dimensions, and build a model with STEP and STL exports. These are design drafts that still require engineering review.

Design planning sends your description and selected process to an external AI provider after your explicit consent. This planning workflow does not send uploaded CAD files. Keep confidential information out of the description; an RFQ NDA request does not cover separately submitted design text.

No. It flags the manufacturing project for a confidentiality arrangement and human handling. Contact the team to agree the NDA before sharing information that requires a separate signed agreement. Historical external RFQ review records retain their original consent and NDA restrictions.

You can request manual CAD support and submit existing files for local requirements checks and human engineering review. New manufacturing requests do not offer an external AI summary option. Earlier review records remain historical after the manufacturing scope changes.

Engineering prepares and approves pricing after reviewing the files, material, quantity, finish, inspection and delivery requirements. A design draft or local requirements check does not set a formal quote.

Check each part’s scope and revision, quantity, price, currency, lead time, shipping and tax lines, validity and payment terms. Ask the team to clarify inspection, exclusions and delivery responsibilities before confirmation.

Each published version retains its approved scope and commercial terms. You can compare changed fields with the prior version. A replacement does not inherit your old confirmation and must be confirmed again.

No. Confirmation records approval of that specific scope and price. Payment is a separate step, and manufacturing release still depends on the required review and payment conditions.

A note, file revision or specification change pauses the affected quote and requires fresh engineering and compliance review. A reviewed replacement is published with the revised scope, then you confirm the new version.

Describe the purpose, geometry, critical interfaces, material and quantity. Engineering and the supplying factory must confirm the suitable route and any exceptions; a menu selection alone is not a capability approval.

Provide the material grade and thickness, cutting or formed geometry, drawing requirements, hardware and finish. State whether the request is for a flat blank or a formed part so engineering reviews the right scope.

Provide the prototype and expected production quantities, drawings, material and post-process requirements. Agree tooling cost, ownership, lead time and inspection scope before committing to a production route.

Yes. Submit the available design brief and reference material in an accepted PDF or ZIP package, or provide existing CAD. Engineering scopes missing dimensions, intended outputs and approval requirements before quoting the design work.

Name the substrate material, finish requirement, visible surfaces, masking and acceptance criteria. Clarify whether dimensions apply before or after finishing, and agree any sample or cosmetic reference needed.

Mark them on the current drawing with units, datums, limits and relevant fits. The team reviews process and measurement requirements before including them in the approved manufacturing scope.

No. Visual checks, dimensional sampling, first article, CMM or other reports are agreed for the project. Request the needed records before quoting so availability, method and cost can be confirmed.

Yes. Name the certificate, batch or heat information and retention needs you require. Availability must be confirmed for the supply route. A material record does not by itself certify the factory or platform.

Illustrations, material menus and example projects do not establish a certification. If your order requires a qualified factory or industry approval, request the actual scope and current evidence before acceptance.

Confirm the current drawing and quote, close required engineering questions and agree the inspection and delivery requirements. Unresolved scope or qualification issues should be addressed before manufacture.

We receive international requests, but acceptance and transport depend on the destination, final use, available service and review. Confirm the shipping arrangement in the quote rather than assuming universal delivery.

No. Manufacturing and carrier transit are separate parts of the plan. Packaging, dispatch, customs review and destination requirements may affect arrival; confirm the required date and actual transport estimate.

Name the selected rule, the named place and its applicable version. Incoterms allocate transport-related responsibilities, costs and risk; the choice must fit the actual shipment and the agreed arrangements.

No. Payment timing, product conformity and dispute arrangements must be agreed separately. A shipping rule does not provide the full commercial terms for a custom manufacturing order.

Review the quote for included transport and tax lines and any charges that remain payable at destination. Do not assume DDP, free duties or the same import arrangement for every country.

No. A claimed checkout, payment record or manufacturing order blocks direct scope edits. Contact the team to review payment status and agree a controlled commercial and manufacturing change before proceeding.

Provide the order reference, tracking information, affected quantity and photos of the parts and packaging. Preserve the packaging and affected parts while the team reviews the evidence and shipment context.

Identify the part, drawing revision, affected feature and quantity. Include units, the measurement method and evidence so the team can compare it with the approved drawing and inspection requirements.

The team reviews evidence against the agreed requirements and records the order-specific resolution. A remedy such as rework, replacement or another arrangement is confirmed for that order; a new design is a scope change.

Contact the team first. Return parts only after the destination, authorization and transport arrangement are confirmed, and retain the written record of the agreed next step.